It seems that we now have an official date, time and location for the launch of Samsung’s Galaxy S IV smartphone: Thursday, March 14 at 7PM in Times Square.

While the launch of most Android smartphones doesn’t command this kind of attention, Samsung’s Galaxy devices are no ordinary smartphones. They’re the phones that have become almost synonymous with the Android brand itself, and in terms of sheer sales, they’re the closest things to a competitor the iPhone has. The Galaxy S III in particular has developed quite the following, and over the past year, Samsung has been promoting the device heavily through television ads that take stereotypical shots at iPhone fans.

The Galaxy S IV’s expected spring launch will definitely make things interesting in the mobile space. Apple released its latest smartphone, the iPhone 5, back in September. That phone is a bit over five months old now. Samsung looks to be launching its next Galaxy S almost a half year after the iPhone’s release, which means it’ll have the fresher product on the shelves and all the press that comes with a major product launch. Could we seen an iPhone 5S try to steal the S4’s thunder in early 2013? Better question: will Apple have anything in the pipeline at all to try and nab some of that spotlight? The iPad with Retina and iPad mini were both launched in October. In order to push out a major product side by side with Samsung, Apple would have to cut its release cycle in half, or issue a mid-life refresh.

All the hype surrounding Samsung’s Galaxy S4 is also bittersweet for Google. While the Galaxy line of phones all run on Android, there are concerns inside Google that Samsung has grown too large and too powerful as an Android partner. Should Samsung decide to move to its own Tizen operating system and achieve the same kind of success, Google will have helped create a monster, essentially.

Other than the above tweet, we don’t really have a lot to go on in terms of Galaxy S IV information. A blurrycam photo or two have surfaced (but you can barely see anything), and we’ve seen some leaked benchmarks that may or may not be legitimate, but other than that, Samsung has done a great job keeping the lid on the S4 before its official unveiling. Unless some major leaks make it out before March 14, we’ll all have to wait and see what Samsung’s new Galaxy S phone has in store.

Shawn Farner is a Harrisburg-based tech blogger who has been involved in online media for over seven years. He covers consumer electronics, Web-based services, and tech startups. Read disclosures here.